UC-NRLF 


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B    3    T2b    73D 


LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS 


AUTHOR   NOTATION 


IN  THE 


LIBRARY   OF   CONGRESS 


BY 


AMA  CANTRELL  LAWS 

ii 

Assistant  in  Charge  of  Shelflistin^ 
Classification  Division 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICE 

LIBRARY    BRANCH 

1917 


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L.  C.  card,  17-26005 


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•   •        ••••••••• 

•  ••  J.:  .^  ::    :  C     : 


AUTHOR  NOTATION 

IN   THE 

LIBRARY  OF  CONGRESS 

At  the  outset,  it  is  assumed  that  all  librarians  are  familiar 
with  the  Dewey  Decimal  Classification,  the  Cutter  Expansive 
Classification,  and  with  various  other  library  classifications, 
and  with  the  several  lists  for  Author  notation,  i.  e.  the  Cut- 
ter two-figure  tables,  the  Cutter  three-figure  tables,  and  the 
Cutter-Sanborn  three-figure  tables. 

As  two  systems  of  notation  are  used  at  one  and  the  same 
time  in  combination — a  Classification  and  an  Author  nota- 
tion— the  difference  between  them  must  be  kept  clearly  in 
mind.  It  is  true  that  in  the  Library  of  Congress  the  two  are 
closely  joined  in  places,  yet  for  all  practical  purposes  there 
is  a  distinct  dividing  line. 

The  Classification  number  is  fixed,  determined  by  a  rigid 
schedule.  The  Author  number  is  usually  on  a  sliding  scale. 
The  Author  numbers  are  decimals  (except  the  date  number- 
ing, which  will  be  considered  later)  ;  the  Classification  num- 
bers, for  the  most  part  whole  numbers.  In  certain  sections 
of  the  classification,  decimal  subdivisions  are  used  under  a 
general  division,  but  these  are  also  determined  by  schedule 
and  may  not  be  altered.  For  example,  E462=Societies  of 
Veterans  of  the  Civil  War.  The  individual  societies  would 
be  represented  by  decimals,  e.  g. 

E462.1     Grand  army  of  the  republic.  • 

E462.2     Military  order  of  the  loyal  legion. 


3 G 5361 


4  AUTHOR    NOTATION 

Every  volume  having  for  its  content  the  subject  of  the  Mili- 
tarv  Order  of  the  Loyal  Legion  bears  the  number  E462.2 
without  modification.  If  Thomas  Brown  should  write  a  his- 
tory of  the  order,  the  volume  would  bear  an  additional  num- 
ber— a  decimal — besides  E462.2.  The  designation  represent- 
ing Brown  could  be  anywhere  from  .B6  to  .B9,  according 
to  the  exigencies  of  the  case,  as,  How  many  Browns  have 
written  upon  this  subject  ?  How  many  editions  is  the  Library 
likely  to  own?  How  many  translations?  How  many  other 
men  whose  names  begin  with  B  are  represented  in  the  class  ? 

The  Classification  number  is  the  string  which  binds  the 
beads  together ;  the  Author  number  determines  the  order  of 
the  beads  on  the  string. 

Many  of  the  Library  of  Congress  Classification  schedules 
having  been  indexed  and  printed  are  available  for  use  in 
other  libraries.  Other  schedules,  including  those  in  progress, 
exist  in  typewritten  form.  The  schedule  in  hand,  the  Classi- 
fication number  can  be  found  and  applied,  and  needs  no 
further  consideration  in  this  connection. 

Before  proceeding  to  the  application  of  the  Author  num- 
bers, it  might  be  well  to  understand  the  scope  of  the  term 
and  the  method  of  expressing  the  symbols.  The  term 
Author  or  book  number  is  used  broadly  and  includes  the 
marks  designating  the  titles  of  serial  publications,  anony- 
mous works,  individual  works  distinguished  by  date,  etc. 
The  letters  should  be  the  capitals  used  in  printing  and  in 
size  one-third  higher  than  the  figure  following.  The  deci- 
mal point  is  indicated,  not  left  to  the  imagination.  In  the 
Author  number  it  is  placed  before  the  letter,  .L8,  not  be- 
tween letter  and  figure,  L.8.  In  the  former  position  it 
serves  to  differentiate  the  class  from  the  author,  and  the  im- 
pression is  more  agreeable  to  the  eye.     Should  the  Book 


AUTHOR   NOTATION  0 

number  be  other  than  a  decimal,  a  space  is  left  between  it 
and  the  preceding  notation,  as  D422  1660.  For  convenience, 
the  notation  is  printed  on  the  lower  margin  of  the  catalogue 
card,  in  a  horizontal  line:  D353.3.S5.  On  books  (book- 
plates, labels,  etc.),  shelflist,  and  catalogue  cards  it  is  writ- 
ten in  a  column.  The  Author  number  is  placed  below  the 
Classification  number,  thus : 

D353 

.3 
.S5 

Should  the  decimal  point  in  D353,3  be  accidentally  omitted 
when  the  number  is  written  horizontalh%  instead  of  three 
hundred  and  fifty-three  and  three-tenths,  the  number  would 
read  three  thousand  five  hundred  and  thirty-three,  and  the 
volume  be  thrown  far  out  of  place.  The  effect  of  the  omis- 
sion in  the  other  case  would  be  practically  nil. 

Author  or  Book  notation  is  naturally  divided  into  two 
arrangements,  the  alphabetical  and  the  chronological.  Other 
arrangements  are  negligible. 

For  a  statement  of  the  theory  and  practice  of  assigning 
book  numbers,  the  novice  is  referred  to  "Simplified  Library 
School  Rules,"  by  Melvil  Dewey,  p.  53-60  (Library  Bureau, 
$1.25),  and  "Library  Notes,"  v.  3,  no.  11,  p.  419-450  (New 
York  Library  School). 

ALPHABETICAL  ARRANGEMENT 

In  the  alphabetical  arrangement  of  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress the  Cutter  three-figure  table  is  used  as  a  basis  in  as- 
signing numbers  for  books  in  Fiction;  the  Cutter-Sanborn 
three-figure  table  for  all  other  classes.    Neither  is  strictlv  ad- 


.-^ 


6  AUTHOK   NOTATION 

hered  to,  and  there  are  numerous  exceptions.  A  few  general 
rules  are  appended. 

I,    MODIFICATIONS  ACCORDING  TO  THK  NUMBER  OF  WORKS 

Where  the  subject  is  likely  to  have  only  a  limited  number 
of  books,  the  Author  designation  is  reduced  to  a  minimum. 
e.  g.  GT2130=History  of  footwear.  There  are  but  foui 
volumes  in  the  class,  numbered  as  follows : 

GT2130.B3     Baudouin,  Benoit.    ...  De  calceo  antique.    1667. 
GT2130.D8    Button,  William  Henry.    The  boots  and  shoes  of 

our  ancestors.     1898. 
GT2130.G7    Greig,  T.  Watson.     Ladies'  old-fashioned  shoes 

1885. 
GT2130.T7    Towle,  Herbert  Chester.     The  shoe  in  romana 

and  history.     1915. 

Should  another  Button  produce  a  book  on  the  history  oi 
footwear,  it  would  take  its  place  in  alphabetical  order  o1 
the  Christian  name  of  the  author,  .D7  for  James  Button. 
.B9  for  William  Thomas  Button. 

In  some  classes,  such  as  PZ3  (Fiction),  OA103  (Arith- 
metical text-books),  TX715  (American  cook-books),  the  en- 
tries are  numerous,  and  the  numbers  may  run  to  four  anc: 
five  figures. 

In  all  simple  author  lists  it  is  perfectly  feasible  to  use 
one,  two,  three  or  more  figures  in  the  same  class.  The  filing 
of  the  books  is  not  disturbed,  e.  g. 

TX715.D28      Davis,  Eldene.    A  table  for  two.    1913. 
TX71S.D285     Dearth,    Nellie   D.,   comp.     Food    for   thought 

[*=1911] 
TX715.D3        Deaver,  Marguerite.     The  Christ  hospital  cool< 

book.     1910. 


AUTHOK    NOTATION  7 

II.    WORKS  BY  the:  SAME)  AUTHOR 

Two  or  more  works  by  the  same  author  in  the  same  class 
are_ differentiated  by  successive  Cutter  numbers,  e.  g. 

HN64.N38     Nearing,  Scott.    Poverty  and  riches.    ['1916] 
HN64.N4      Nearing,  Scott.     Social  adjustment.     1911. 
HN64.N44    Nearing,  Scott.     Social  sanity,  1911. 

(Note  that  entries  are  in  alphabetical  order  of  title) 

In  fiction  the  differentiation  is  effected  by  incorporating:  the 
initial  letter  (or  letters)  of  titles,  e.  g. 

PZ3.S848Dy    Stevenson,  R.  L.    The  dynamiter.    1885. 
PZ3.S848K      Stevenson,  R.  L.     Kidnapped.     1912. 

There  are  certain  exceptions  which  are  determined  by  the 
individual  scheme.  If,  for  instance,  the  author  is  included 
in  the  Classification  number,  the  Book  numbers  indicate  the 
titles  of  his  works,  e.  g. 

QH365=Works  on  evolution  by  Darwin. 
QH  365  D  1871     Darwin,  Charles.    The  descent  of  man.    1871. 
QH  365  D  1909    Darwin,  Charles.    The  descent  of  man.    1909. 
QH  365  O  1881     Darwin,  Charles.     On  the  origin  of  species. 
1881. 

PR3487=  Separate  works  by  Goldsmith. 

PR  3487.06    Ooldsmith,  Oliver.  The  good-natured  man. 

1768? 

PR  3487.H4    Goldsmith,  Oliver.  The  hermit.     1886. 

PR4453.C4=Chesterton. 
PR  4453.C4D4     Chesterton,  G.  K.    The  defendant.     1902. 
PR  4453.C4M3     Chesterton,  G.  K.     Magic.     1913. 

(Note  two  Cutter  numbers  joined;   Author  number  and 
number  for  title) 


y 


// 


8  AUTHOE    NOTATION 


III.    EDITIONS 


Editions  are  differentiated  in  several  ways — 
^    a)   When  the  number  of  editions  is  Hkely  to  be  Hmited,  suc- 
cessive editions  are  dift'erentiated  by  successive  Cutter  num- 
bers, e,  g. 

NC710.H26    Hamerton,  P.  G.     The  graphic  arts.     1883. 
NC710.H27    Hamerton,  P.  G.     The  graphic  arts.     1902. 

b)  When  editions  are  likely  to  be  numerous,  by  date  of  pub- 
lication, e.  g. 

QM23.G7  1866  Gray,  Henry.    Anatomy.     1866. 

QM23.G7  1883  Gray,  Henry.    Anatomy.     1883. 

QM23.G7  1913  Gray,  Henry.    Anatomy.    Philadelphia,  1913. 

QM23.G7  1913a  Gray,  Henry.    Anatomy.    London,  1913. 

(Note  the  lower-case  "a"  differentiating  the  two  editions 
of  1913) 

c)  In  fiction,  by  the  addition  of  an  integral  number,  e.  g. 

PZ3.C857LO      Crawford,  F.  M.     Love  in  idleness.     1909. 
PZ3.C857Lo2    Crawford,  F.  M.     Love  in  idleness.     1910. 

d)  In  certain  cases  where  the  title  of  the  work  is  included  in 
the  classification  number,  by  editor  or  translator,  e.  g. 

PR2753.B8  Shakespeare,  William.  ...  Complete  works  ...  ed. 
by  W.  C.  Bryant.    1896. 

PR2753.C6  Shakespeare,  William.  ...  The  works  ...  ed.  by 
W.  G.  Clark.     1866. 

PR2753.F8  Shakespeare,  William.  The  old-spelling  Shake- 
speare ...  ed.  by  F.  G.  Furnival.    1907- 

IV.    TRANSLATIONS 

Translations  are  differentiated  in  several  ways,  although 
the  same  order  is  always  maintained,  i.  e.  after  the  original 


AUTHOR    NOTATION 


9 


text  the  translations  follow  in  alphabetical  order  of  language, 
a)  Where  the  sequence  of  authors  and  titles  is  alphabetical, 
the  order  is  secured  by  the  assignment  of  successive  Cutter 
numbers,  e.  g. 

La  vie  simple.    1895. 
The  simple  life.    1902. 
La  vida  sencilla.    1907. 
Die  traumdeutung.   1909, 
The    interpretation    of 


BJ1496.W18 

BJ1496.W2 

BJ1496.W3 

BF1078.F7 

BF1078.F72 


1913 


BFI078.F72    1915 


Wagner,  Charles. 
Wagner,  Charles. 
Wagner,  Charles. 
Freud,  Sigmund. 
Freud,    Sigmund. 

dreams.     1913. 
Freud,    Sigmund. 

dreams.     1915. 


The   interpretation   of 


(This  rule  does  not  conflict  with  Ilia.  When  translations 
and  editions  occur  in  the  same  list,  the  latter  are  difieren- 
tiated  by  the  dates  of  publication,  as  in  example  under 
Freud.) 

b)  In  classes  where  the  arrangement  is  chronological,  a 
lower-case  letter  may  be  added  to  the  date,  e.  g. 

JN8763  1874  Switzerland.  Bundesverfassung.  Bundesver- 
fassung  der  Schweizerischen  eidgenossen- 
schaft.    (Vom  29.  mai  1874)     [1874] 

JN8763  1874f  Switzerland.  Bundesverfassung.  Constitu- 
tion federale  de  la  Confederation-  suisse  du 
29  mai  1874.     [1874] 

c)  In  other  classes,  as  Literature,  the  distinction  is  in  part 
expressed  by  the  Classification  number,  in  part  by  a  specially 
provided  schedule,  e.  g. 

PR3561=Translations  of  Paradise  lost. 
PR3561.F5C5    Milton,   John.     Le   Paradis   perdu.     Trad,   de 

Chateaubriand.     1855. 
PR3561.G5B6     Milton,  John,    ...  Verlohrnes  Paradies  ...  iibers. 

von  J.  J.  Bodmer.     1780. 


~> 


1 


10  AUTHOB    NOTATION 

PR3561.I5M4    Milton,  John.    II  Paradiso  perduto  ...  trad,  da 
F.  Mariottini.     1796. 
(Note  that  .F5=:French,  .G5=German,  etc.) 

or 
PT8110=:Billedbog  uden  billeder,  of  Hans  Christian  An- 
dersen. 
PT8110.B5G3    Andersen,  Hans  Christian.    ...  Bilderbuch  ohne 
bilder  ...  with  vocabulary  by  W.  Bernhardt 
1891. 
PT8110.B5G7    Andersen,  Hans  Christian.    ...  Bilderbuch  ohne 
bilder  ...  with  English  notes  ...  by  L.  Simon- 
son.     [1887] 
(Note  that  the  number  for  edition  is  fused  with  the  lan- 
guage number:   .G3=German  ed.  by  Bernhardt,  .G7=: 
German  ed.  by  Simonson) 

V.    DOUBLE   NUMBE:rS 

In  one  of  the  foregoing  examples  a  double  Cutter  number 
may  be  observed  (.C4D4)  Double  numbering  has  been 
found  effective  and  practical  and  has  been  used  extensively. 
Both  figures  are  decimals  and  both  can  be  expanded 
wherever  necessary.  The  decimal  point  is  placed  before  the 
first  letter  but  omitted  before  the  second,  giving  the  notation 
a  compact  appearance.  The  first  letter  and  figure,  generally, 
though  not  always,  indicate  the  subject;  the  second  letter 
and  figure,  the  author.  Where  the  number  of  subjects  can 
be  definitely  or  approximately  ascertained,  they  have  been 
worked  out  and  embodied  in  the  Classification  schedules, 
e.  g.  QD341  ==  Special  groups  of  aromatic  compounds, 
HF5716  =  Particular  commercial  commodities,  DA690  = 
Cities  and  towns  of  England. 

In  small  libraries  it  may  be  practical  to  dispense  with  sub- 
divisions and  enter  the  books  in  one  alphabet  under  the  au- 
thors, but  such  an  arrangement  in  a  large  collection  would 


I 


ATJTHOB    NOTATrOK  *  11 

»deieat  the  aim  of  the  classification.  The  five  hundred  and 
eighteen  cities  and  towns  Hsted  under  DA690  were  all  taken 
from  actual  shelflist  entries.  This  means  that  the  Library  of 
Congress  has  at  least  one  volume  of  history  or  description  on 
each  of  the  five  hundred  and  eighteen  towns.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  there  are  often  more.  Bristol  alone  has  twenty-two 
individual  entries. 

In  some  cases  the  "double-number"  is  used  on  the  shelf- 
list  without  being  incorporated  in  the  Classification  schedule, 
CT=^ General  biography,  i.  e,  biography  that  cannot  be  classi- 
fied by  subject  elsewhere-  Here  are  collected  hundreds  of 
lives  of  more  or  less  important  people,  and  hundreds  more 
will  doubtless  be  intercalated.  A  ready-to-be-used  scheme  is 
not  practicable.  The  numbers  are  distributed  to  suit  the  col- 
lection at  hand  and  may  be  redistributed  as  necessity  requires. 
Double  numbering  also  serves  another  purpose.  In  a  gen* 
eral  class,  its  use  allows  a  criticism  of  a  particular  work  to 
follow  the  work  itself,  e.  g. 

BX4819=Early  controversial  works  against  Protestantism. 
BX4819.B5         Bossuet,    J.    B.      Histoire    des   variations    des 

eglises  protestantes.     1770. 
BX4819.B6         Bossuet,  J.  B.    The  history  of  the  variations  of 

the  Protestant  churches.     1836. 
BX4819.B7R4    Rebelliau,  Alfred.     Bossuet ...  etude  sur  1'  "His- 
toire des  variations."     1909. 

VI.    SEVERAL  WORKS  BEGINNING  WITH  THE  SAME  WORD 

It  sometimes  follows  from  the  nature  of  the  subject  that 
many  entries  in"a  given  subdivision  will  begin  with  the  same 
word.  In  such  cases  the  numbers  are  shifted  accordingly. 
Nl=American  and  English  art  periodicals.  The  Library  of 
Congress  contains  nineteen  art  serials,  with  titles  running 
the   gamut    from    "Art"   to    "Art   student,"   besides   "The 


12  AUTHOE    NOTATIOK 

Artist,"  "The  Artists*  repository/'  "Arts  and  decoration," 
and  "Arts  for  America."  Instead  of  grafting  them  all  on 
.A8,  carrying  the  decimals  to  three  figures,  .A3-.A8  is  used 
for  entries  beginning  with  Art,  leaving  .A1-.A2  and  .A9  to 
accommodate  the  five  other  entries  which  precede  and  follow. 

VII.    DE:CIMAIvS  1   AND  9 

In  assigning  book  numbers  care  should  be  taken  in  the 
^-^  tise  of  .1  and  .9.  The}^  should  be  used  with  reserve.  In 
the  early  stages  of  the  work  this  fact  was  not  appreciated. 
Under  DA890,  Cities  and  towns  of  Scotland,  .SI  was  as- 
signed to  St.  Andrews.  Should  there  be  a  monograph  on 
the  picturesque  village  of  St.  Abb's,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
shift  four  entries  from  .SI  to  .S2  (in  disagreement  with 
the  printed  schedule)  or  use  an  awkward  symbol,  as  .S05. 

If  a  book  in  the  shelflist  bears  the  number  .C6,  the  one 
immediately  following  should  not  be  .C61 ;  or  if  the  first  be 
.C62,  the  next  should  not  be  .C621,  unless  it  is  intended  to 
block  the  way- — to  keep  any  entry  from  coming  between  the 
two.  There  are  cases  when  it  becomes  imperative  to  place 
books  next  to  each  other.  An  example  of  this  may  be  found 
in  American  literature  of  the  nineteenth  century.  For  the 
works  of  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  the  Library  of  Congress- 
has  a  special  scheme,  the  last  number  of  which  is  PS  1998. 
The  number  PS  1999  is  assigned  to  writers  between  Holmes 
and  Richard  Hovey.  Among  them  is  Justice  Oliver  Wen- 
dell Holmes,  whose  number  is  PS1999.H1.  Obviously, 
nothing  can  come  between  PS1998  and  PS1999.H1,  the 
son's  name  immediately  following  the  father's. 

The  use  of  .9  is  not  so  dangerous  as  the  use  of  .1.  It 
can  be  built  out  indefinitely.     Still,  in  order  to  prevent  the 


AUTHOR    NOTATION  13 

numbers  from  growing  unwieldy  it  is  often  desirable  to 
push  them  back  from  the  edge.  ND497=Painters  of  Great 
Britain  without  distinction  of  period.  According  to  the 
Cutter-Sanborn  table,  Burne-Jone?  would  be  given  .B9.  It 
is  better  to  assign  .B8,  and  leave  some  room  for  future 
painters  whose  names  follow  alphabetically.  Who's  Who 
gives  no  less  than  sixty  names  alphabetically  following 
Burne-Jones. 

VARIATIONS   IN   THE  ALPHABETICAL 
ARRANGEMENT 

I.    WORKS  AT  THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  CLASS 

Under  many  subjects  it  is  advisable  to  place  certain  forms 
of  material  at  the  beginning  of  the  class,  and  the  notation 
is  manipulated  to  this  end.  This  is  perfectly  feasible  as  the 
proportion  of  surnames  beginning  with  A  is  small.  .Al  to 
.A6  or  .Al  to  .A8  may  always  be  reserved  when  needed,  and 
authors'  surnames  beginning  with  that  letter  find  room  vmder 
.A7  to  .A9  or  .A9  alone  if  .A1-.A8  has  been  set  aside  for 
other  purposes.  As  examples  of  this  usage  the  following 
cases  are  selected : 

a)  In  biography.  A  man's  autobiography  precedes  his  life, 
written  by  another  person,  e.  g. 

B1606.A2     Mill,  John  Stuart.     ...  Autobiography.     1909. 
B1606.C8    Courtney,  W.  L.     Life  of  John  Stuart  Mill.     1889. 

b)  In  geographical  divisions  or  subdivisions  where  the  coun- 
try, state,  or  city  is  the  author,  e.  g. 

QE193=:Geology  of  Quebec. 
QE193.A6    Quebec  (Province)     Dept.  of  lands,  etc.    Rapport 

sur  la  geologic  ...  de  Chibougamau.    1912. 
QE193A7    Adams,  F.  D.    Report  on  the  geology  of  the  Lau- 
rentian  area.     1896. 


14  AUTHOR    NOTATION 

c)   In  form  classes,,  galleries,  museums,  etc.,  where  the  insti- 
tution itself  issues  publications,  e.  g. 

N1070=National  gallery  of  London. 

N1070.A2  London.    National  gallery  ...     Report. 

N1070.A6  1911  London.  National  gallery  ...  Catalogue. 
British  school.     191 L 

N1070.A7  1906  London.  National  gallery.  An  abridged  cat- 
alogue.   Foreign  schools.     1906. 

N1070.A9  Addison,  Julia  de  Wolf.    The  art  of  the  Na- 

tional gallery.     1906. 

(A  number  of  entries  between  .A2  and  .A6  are  omitted 
here) 

II.    WORKS  AT  THE)  I^ND  01^  THK  CLASS 

Just  as  important  material  (usually  of  a  documentary 
character)  has  been  placed  at  the  beginning  of  the  alphabet, 
so  conversely,  unimportant  matter  may  be  consigned  to  the 
end,  by  the  use  of  .Z7  to  .Z9.  In  class  Z  (Bibliography) 
.Z9  is  frequently  assigned  to  sale  catalogues  of  collections 
of  books  on  a  certain  subject. 

III.  numbe:ring  unde:r  thi:  second  letter 

In' classification  of  twentieth-century  literature  where  the 
number  of  entries  is  likely  to  be  large,  a  system  has  been 
devised  which  materially  reduces  the  length  of  the  Author 
notation.  It  must  remain  for  the  future  to  determine  the 
relative  importance  of  the  present  literary  endeavor.  Foi 
the  time  being,  all  twentieth-century  literary  writers  are 
filed  alphabetically  in  their  respective  classes.  But  in  all  the 
larger  literatures,  instead  of  allowing  one  Classification  num- 


AUTHOB    NOTATION  15 

ber  to  represent  the  entire  alphabet,  each  letter  has  a  Classi- 
fication number  to  itself.  Thus  PS3501~American  authors 
whose  surnames  begin  with  A.  PS3503=American  authors 
whose  surnames  begin  with  B.  The  author  symbol  then 
represents — not  the  first  letter  of  the  Author's  name,  but 
the  second  letter.  Thus  PS3537=American  twentieth-cen- 
tury authors  whose  surnames  begin  with  S,  and, 

.A14=Saben,  Mowry. 
.A15=Sabin,  Will. 
A92=:Sauter,  Edwin. 
.C16=Scarborough,  Dorothy. 
.E26=:Seeger,  Alan. 

The  letter  S  combines  with  fifteen  other  letters  of  the  alpha- 
bet, and  the  author  numbers  can  thus  be  broken  up  into 
fifteen  separate  groups.  The  Library  of  Congress  already 
has  three  hundred  entries  under  PS3537,  and  it  is  obvious 
that  when  listed  in  the  fifteen  groups  the  numbers  will  be 
smaller  than  they  would  be  if  the  entries  were  combined 
into  one  list. 

CHRONOLOGICAL  ARRANGEMENT 

So  far  we  have  dealt  mainly  with  the  alphabetical  arrange- 
ment and  its  exceptions.  The  chronological  arrangement  is 
often  a  more  appropriate  sequence,  and  its  advantage  was 
early  recognized  by  librarians.  Several  systems  were  de- 
vised, notably  the  Biscoe  date-letters.  (For  an  explanation 
of  the  Biscoe  date-letters,  see  Cutter's  Expansive  Classifi- 
cation, Pt.  I.  p.  130-131,  or  Dewey's  Decimal  Classification 
1915,  p.  854-855)  Examples  of  chronological  arrangement 
in  the  Library  of  Congress  are: 


16  ATJTHOE    NOTATION 

I.    IN    HISTORY 

For  pamphlet  literature  during  certain  reigns — 

DA  398  1629  .B2  Bacon,  Francis.  Considerations  touching  a 
warre  with  Spaine.     1629. 

DA  398  1630  .W2  Wadsworth,  James.  The  English  Spanish 
pilgrime.     1630. 

II.    IN    SCIE^NC^ 
For  individual  comets  appearing  within  a  given  period — 

QB  726  58.B7    Bond,  G.  P.     On  the  outline  of  the  head  of 

the  comet  of  Donati,  1858.     1862. 
QB  726  61.B7    Bond,  G.  P.     Account  of  the  comet  IT,  1861. 

1861. 
QB  726  61. K8     Kreutz,  Heinrich.     Untersuchungen   iiber   die 
bahn  des  grossen  kometen  von  1861.     1880. 
(Note  that  the  century  is  included  in  Classification  num- 
ber, e.  g.  QB726=:Comets  appearing  between  1800-1899) 

III.    IN    POIvlTlCAI.    science: 

For  certain  congressional  documents,  as  hearings  on  a  spe- 
cific subject — 

JK  1888  1892  U.  S.  Congress.  House.  Committee  on  the 
judiciary.  Hearing  of  the  Woman  suffrage 
association  ...  January  18,  1892.     1892, 

JK  1888  1896  U.  S.  Congress.  House.  Committee  on  the 
judiciar3^  Hearing  of  the  National  woman 
suffrage  association  ...  January  28,  1896. 
1896. 

JK  1888  1896a  U.  S.  Congress.  Senate.  Select  committee 
on  woman  suffrage.  ...  Report  of  hearing 
...  on  woman  suffrage.  Januar^^  28,  1896. 
1896. 

JK  1888  1912  U.  S.  Congress.  House.  Committee  on  the 
judiciary.  Woman  suffrage.  ...  Hearings 
...  February  14,  1912.     1912. 


AUTHOR    NOTATION  17 

iV.    IN    LITERATURE 

a)  To  distinguish  editions  when  the  title  is  included  in  the 
classification : 

PR  5814=Collected  poems  of  Oscar  Wilde. 
PR  5814  1903     Wilde,  Oscar.     Poems.     1903. 
PR  5814  1908    Wilde,  Oscar.    The  poetical  works.    1908. 
PR  5814  1910     Wilde,  Oscar.     Poems.     1910. 

b)  When  editions  of  an  author's  works  are  voluminous,  and 
their  publication  extends  over  a  number  of  years,  editions 
without  editor  are  numbered  by  a  scheme  of  date-letters 
somewhat  similar  to  the  Biscoe  date-letters.  (See  Litera- 
ture schedule,  Table  j)  e.  g. 

PQ  2279  E41  Hugo,  Victor  Marie.  GEuvres.  1841-44. 
PQ  2279  E85  Hugo,  Victor  Marie.  CEuvres.  1885-95. 
PQ  2279  F04    Hugo,  Victor  Marie.    CEuvres  completes.    1904- 

V.    IN   VARIOUS   OTHER    PLACES 

In  all  places,  whether  the  complete  date  or  a  system  of 
date-lettering  (as  in  J82,  Presidents'  messages)  is  used,  the 
facts  are  clearly  set  forth  in  the  Classification  schedules. 

CONCLUSION 

The  Author  notation  of  the  Library  of  Congress  has  been 
a  gradual  development.  There  w^ere  a  few  tables  to  serve  as 
general  guides,  but  almost  no  precedents  for  special  contin- 
gencies.   It  has  been  necessary  to  arrange  and  rearrange. 

Hundreds  of  tables  to  fit  individual  cases  have  been 
worked  out.  Some  of  these  may  be  called  floating — they 
can  be  attached  wherever  necessary.  Such  are  the  "Table 
of  cities  of  the  United  States,"  "Table  of  states,"  "Table  of 
countries  in  one  alphabet."     These  are  all  printed  in  the 

3316—17-26005 2 


18  AUTHOR    NOTATION" 

Classification  schedule  for  Class  H  and  several  of  them  in 
various  other  schedules. 

There  are  other  tables  peculiarly  adapted  to  certain  cases, 
but  also  applicable  elsewhere.  Such  are  the  lists  of  the 
provinces  of  France  (DC  611),  the  cities  of  Germany 
(DD  901),  and  of  special  lines  of  business  (HF  5686) 

Other  tables  are  not  so  flexible  and  fit  only  the  subject  to 
which  they  are  affixed. 

No  table  should  be  slavishly  followed,  but  should  be  am- 
plified or  modified  as  exigencies  arise.  As  books  are  not 
screws,  turned  out  by  machinery,  according  to  a  mathematical 
formula,  but  present  infinite  variety  as  to  form  and  con- 
tent, an  orderly  arrangement  requires  the  constant  exercise 
of  ingenuity  and  common  sense.  An  example  illustrating 
this  point  may  be  taken  from  the  Literature  schedule 
(PN-PR-PS-PZ)  In  Table  viii  a  the  literary  forms  of 
an  author's  works  are  placed  in  the  following  order: 
1.  Novels,  2.  Essays,  3.  Poems,  4.  Plays.  If  an  author  is 
pre-eminently  a  novelist,  his  novels  take  precedence.  If  he 
is  a  playwright  par  excellence,  the  dramas  would  take  first 
position  and  the  novels  be  relegated  to  fourth  place,  and  so 
on.  If  the  author  has  written  nothing  but  poetry,  is  it  neces- 
sary merely  for  the  sake  of  uniformity  to  crowd  all  his  works 
into  the  third  section  and  waste  the  others? 

Author  notation  may  be  defined  as  a  system  of  rules  to  be 
judiciously  broken. 


1 

14  DAY  USE                     1 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewal. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 

V  'Ai 

7  1972 

APR  1      1974 

T  n9i    q;^«,  9  '71                                General  Library 
iFWollmT7illU2                  Universg^of  California 

M- 


